A Dozen Ways to Reap the Many Benefits of Quality Video Content
Whether you’re looking to strengthen your company’s brand or your personal social media brand, few tactics are as impactful as video. From social media posts, reels, and stories to emails, digital ads, websites, and streaming services, video is clearly one of the most popular, convenient, and effective ways to connect with audiences in this day and age.
Be it a six-second bumper ad or a more in-depth 90-second reel, video marketing’s powerful mix of visual and verbal tends to persuade and captivate better than still images (e.g. billboards and signage) or simple audio (e.g. radio) can. This is why a vast majority of businesses use video marketing as part of their overall digital marketing strategies today.
Regardless of your business’s size or budget, successful video marketing can help your brand grow, improve marketing KPIs, and achieve important marketing goals relating to:
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- Engagement
- Brand awareness
- Brand storytelling
- Conversion rates
- SEO performance
- Social media presence
- Credibility, authenticity, & trust
- Data & analytics
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If you’re thinking about adding video to your marketing strategy or if you already do and are looking for ways to make it better, here are 12 top tips for making standout video content:
1. Hook Viewers Immediately
In the fast-paced digital world of quick clicks and mindless scrolling, your video content must be made to instantly capture the incredibly short attention spans of today’s consumers. Your videos must begin with visuals, verbal, and/or text that’s enticing and persuasive enough to hook them into clicking open or watching further. Within the first few seconds, present a bold statement, an intriguing question, or captivating picture to draw viewers in.
2. Don’t Use Clickbait.
Unless they’re at a magic show, most people don’t enjoy being tricked, and that’s especially true when it comes to getting fooled to click on a video that ends up being not what it appears to be. Strong brands create a sense of trust and credibility with their customers and prospects. Misleading clickbait will only alienate your audience and hurt your brand’s reputation. Savvy online shoppers can spot it from a mile away and scroll right past.
3. Explore Different Formats.
There are a wide variety of marketing video formats to use to your advantage, including:
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- Product reveals
- Product demos
- Product comparisons
- Features/benefits analysis
- Customer testimonials
- Webinars/tutorials/how-tos
- Behind-the-scenes
- Interviews
- Illustration/animation
- Event recaps
- Live streaming
- Brand storytelling
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Experiment with different formats to see what best resonates with your audience and helps you achieve your specific marketing objectives.
4. Be Different, Better, 1-OAK.
Setting yourself apart from competitors takes what we at M:7 like to call being 1-OAK (one of a kind). People don’t want to see the same thing from brands; they want a reason to choose one over the other, and your job in your video content is to do something different or better, something that stands out in a thoughtful, humorous, entertaining, or just plain clever way, however…
5. Make Sure It’s an Extension of Your Brand.
It’s alright to take chances occasionally and go outside the creative box in your videos, but never go so far out that people don’t still recognize your brand. From your business’s voice and values to your brand’s unique value proposition, don’t veer too far off your carefully crafted branding path to get more clicks. Find a way while staying true to your brand.
6. Offer Value to Your Audience.
Assuming you know exactly who your target audience is and what the best platforms are to reach them (and if you don’t, it’s time that you do with help from M:7 Agency), your video should center on offering something of value to your target audience. Offer unique insight, entertainment, or special savings. Show and tell existing customers how to use your product or how it will solve prospective buyers’ problems or “pain points” should they make the purchase.
7. Don’t Overstay Your Welcome.
While some platforms have time limits and others don’t, you should try your best to keep your video a digestible length. Have you ever watched a social media ad that takes three minutes to get to the point? It’s frustrating and patronizing to be purposefully strung along. Unless you’re covering a complex subject and you know your audience is there for it all, your videos should be relatively short (15 to 60 seconds) and engaging. Why do you think most TV and radio commercials are 15-30 seconds? It’s not just about cost; people lose interest quickly, so cut to the chase in your videos when possible.
8. Craft a Compelling Story.
Movies. TV shows. Books. Storytelling is a big part of our everyday lives, and that includes marketing, as great stories connect with and capture the attention of audiences. Video in particular allows for more options and greater creativity than just the spoken or written word. Be it your brand or a customer telling it, wrap a story around how your product or service makes people’s lives better.
9. Shoot for a Polished, Professional Look.
While even today’s smartphones can provide amazing HD video, they don’t often have the best audio. Then you’ve got things like angles, lighting, and editing to consider if you want to deliver a professional-looking video, which you should if people are going to take your brand seriously. Yes, your content choices are important, but quality also matters a great deal to your video’s ultimate success. You could invest time and money in the best equipment and DIY, or you could hire a proven partner like M:7 Agency who can help you do it right.
10. Include Compelling Calls to Action (CTAs).
Encouraging your audience to take the next step to where you want them to go, CTAs are an essential component of all marketing campaigns, which includes your video efforts. Whether it’s getting viewers to visit your website, subscribe to a newsletter, or make a purchase, make your CTA clear and compelling. Even if you’re entertaining or educating, you should still have a goal, from increasing followers to raising brand awareness.
11. Add Captions & Text.
Because we can browse the Web just about anywhere anymore, a large amount of viewers watch videos without sound, especially when at work, out on the town, or in stores. Don’t forget to include text overlays and/or close captioning to cater to those who don’t have their audio on.
12. Leverage SEO Best Practices.
How you rank in search results is a critical factor in staying one step ahead of the competition, which is why search engine optimization (SEO) is so important. Improve search visibility by optimizing video titles, descriptions, and tags with relevant keywords.
These 12 top tips should help you on your way to creating an effective video marketing content strategy. For professional help strategizing and crafting your video, M:7 Agency offers the experience, 1-OAK vision, and ability to execute it at the highest level to help you achieve your unique marketing goals. Reach out to us today to discuss your video marketing strategy.